JBL addresses Mauro Ranallo's WWE exit

John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL) received backlash from many WWE fans when Mauro Ranallo abruptly left his SmackDown commentary role. In a recent podcast episode, the Hall of Famer gave an insight into what really happened.

In 2017, JBL mocked Ranallo on the WWE Network show Bring It to the Table after the commentator won a Wrestling Observer award for Best Announcer. The in-character criticism coincided with Ranallo's sudden absence from television, prompting some fans to call for JBL to be fired.

On Something to Wrestle, the former WWE Champion clarified he had nothing to do with Ranallo stepping away from the announce desk:

"I'm a heel commentator," JBL said. "I did this rant on Bring It to the Table, which literally was a one hundred percent work about a poll that I had never seen before. Certainly wasn't upset about it. Well, then, all of a sudden, all this stuff came out that I ran off Mauro Ranallo out of WWE, which WWE, to my benefit, did a big, long study about why Mauro left, internal, from what they told me. My name was never mentioned in it." [1:53:56 – 1:54:23]

Ranallo parted ways with WWE in April 2017 before returning two months later as the lead announcer for the NXT brand. He left the company again in August 2020.

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JBL on his relationship with Mauro Ranallo

Before his SmackDown departure, Mauro Ranallo commentated on the show alongside David Otunga, JBL, and Tom Phillips.

JBL added that he cleared the air with Ranallo in person after rumors circulated about the reason behind his exit:

"I saw Mauro later. We were in New Orleans. I went across the street, I saw him, I shook his hand just to let him know that there were certainly no hard feelings from me to him. He got me UFC tickets before. I think Conor McGregor in Vegas. Really nice of him. I thought we were, I don't know about friends, but decent acquaintances is what I thought. To my knowledge, I never did anything mean to Mauro and I didn't think we had a bad relationship." [1:54:25 – 1:54:52]

Ranallo also commentates on boxing and mixed martial arts. In August, he returned to wrestling as an announcer for Scott D'Amore's Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling.

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Please credit Something to Wrestle and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.